Rasarumah

Rasarumah delivers a delicious experience of Southeast Asian-inspired flavors, featuring an intimate atmosphere and thoughtfully crafted dishes

One of the best things about being apart of a vibrant community like Groundfloor is that ideas and conversations are always flowing around me. Christine, One of the community managers, and I usually get into incredible conversations about food. After a conversation about Maru Coffee, we went over a list of her current favorite restaurants in Los Angeles. One of them was Rasarumah, a Malaysian restaurants right at the bottom of Silverlake.

As it had been a few months since I’d had dinner with Jeremy, I offered it as one of my picks for him to choose from. Immediately, much to my happiness, he picked Rasarumah and I made a reservation.

Thankfully, Jeremy gave me a suggestion of where to park: on a side street a block up from the restaurant. Beverly can be – annoying – to find parking on.

I began with glass of Cantina Horus’s 2018  ‘Pittore Contadino’, a Nero d’Avolo / Frappato blend  from Cerasuolo d’Vittoria region in Italy. It was served chill and honestly, a solid pairing for what was to come.

As a celebration of the Lunar New Year, we ordered the LO HEI (hiramasa sashimi, cucumber, jicama, wonton chips, pickled ginger, fresnc csame, chives, sour plum sauce).

Lo Hei, also called Yee Sang or the Prosperity Toss, is a raw fish salad enjoyed during Chinese New Year. This communal tradition symbolizes unity and prosperity for the year ahead. We were instructed to mix it all together at the same time, to bring in good fortune.

Next up was the SHRIMP CHIPS with SOUR SAMBAL (bright sambal w. red pepper, tamarind & shallot), SAMBAL LJO (spicy green sambal w. belacan, green tomatoes & chilis) and SAMBAL TUMIS (savory sambal w. dried shrimp & chilis).

The AYAM BEREMPAH (Malaysian style fried chicken wings, sweet chili sauce) was delicious.

WONTON MEE (soy egg noodles, pork jowl char siu, yuchoy, pickled jalapeno, pork & shrimp wonton) was my favorite dish of the evening.

The BANANA LEAF STEAMED BLACK COD (sambal tumis, herbs, grilled lime, jasmine rice, crispy shallots) was another outstanding dish.

We finished with the CENDOL SUNDAE (coconut pandan ice cream, pandan jelly noodles, red bean, gula melaka syrup, toasted buckwheat)

Dinner at Rasarumah was a delightful experience. It was absolutely feast for the senses to enjoy Malaysian cuisine and a vibrant blend of flavors – without needing to book a flight.

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